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"Oh" Try as she ht she was someone else His interest was not in her, but in a wo away, she sank onto the s her skirts for co her ertips

"It is ize to you" Her head tilted back so that their gazes oaded you to stay when you wanted to go"

The contemplative cant to his head made her wish she could see the features beneath the pearlescent mask Despite the lack of a complete visual picture, she found hi rumble of his voicethe luscious shape of his lipsthe unshakable confidence of his bearing

But then he was not truly unshakable She was affecting hier should not be able to And he was affecting her equally

"That was not what you wished to hear," he noted, stepping closer

Her gaze strayed to his boots, watching as his cape fluttered around the, but she was unafraid

Amelia waved one hand in a careless affectation of dismissal, unsure of what to say He was correct; she was too bold But she was not brazen enough to adratifying "I hope you find the wo for," she said instead

"I am afraid that isn’t possible"

"Oh?"

"She was lost toin his words, she sympathized "I am sorry for your loss I, too, have lost someone dear to me and kno it feels"

Montoya took a seat beside her The bench was small, and due to its curvature it forced theh that her skirts touched his cape It was improper for them to be seated so close to each other, yet she did not protest Instead she breathed deeply and discovered he smelled like sandalwood and citrus Crisp, earthy, and virile Like theto suffer as I do," he murmured

"You underestie of those left behind"

The ribbons that graced the stick of her ently in the soft breeze and caht of the lavender, pink, and pale blue satin against his stark black riveted her attention

Hoould they look to passersby? Her voluay multicolored flowers next to his complete lack of any color at all

"You should not be out here alone," he said, rubbing her ribbons between his thuloves, whichthat belonged to her was irresistible

"I am accustomed to solitude"

"Do you enjoy it?"

"It is familiar"

"That is not an answer"

A the many details one can see only in extre, thick lashes surrounding al Accented by shadows that came from within as well as from without

"What was she like?" she asked "The woht I was"

The barest hint of a smile betrayed the possibility of dimples "I asked you a question first," he said

She heaved a dra curve of his lips He never set his smile coht see it "Very well, Count Montoya In answer to your query, yes, I enjoy being alone"

"Many people find being alone intolerable"

"They have no iination"

"Oh?" He canted his body toward her The pose caused his doeskin breeches to stretch tautly across the powerful ray satin spread out beneath him in contrast, she could see every nuance and plane, every hard length of sinew "What do you i hard, Amelia found she could not look away fro him, her interest coaze upward, dazed by the direction of her own thoughts "Stories Faery tales and such"

With the halfhis features she couldn’t be certain, but she thought he ht have arched a brow at her "Do you write them down?"

"Occasionally"

"What do you do with them?"

"You have asked far toolittered ar score?"

"You were," she pointed out "I a the rules you set"

There! A dimple She saw it

"She was audacious," he murmured, "like you"

Aroove in his cheek "Did you like that about her?"

"I loved that about her"

The intimate pitch to his voice made her shiver

He stood and held his hand out to her "You are cold, Miss Benbridge You should go inside"

She looked up at hio inside with me?"

The count shook his head